4. Troll-aukmn
To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under the heavens;
A time to be born,
And a time to die.
- Ecclesiastes
"You're too nosy to live, Potter."
- Philosopher's Stone
Ron paced the dorm floor, worrying.
Where's Harry? Where's Hedwig? Why didn't they come back?
This is all wrong!
There seemed to be no possible way out of his quandry, except to move now, before the storm got any worse — if it could get any worse! Ron gathered his thoughts and pocketed his wand, the compass and the tunnel guide. In the Quidditch lockers, he nicked a school broom, and flew away toward Hordgrund.
About halfway, as Hedwig battled her way south toward Hogwarts in the howling wind and torrential downpour, Ron rocketed northward past her — neither spotting the other.
-o-
Hedwig finally arrived at Hogwarts, exhausted. Though it was just a few miles, she had undergone several hours of flying through the staggering ferocity of the storm. She tried tapping at the usual window between Ron's bed and Harry's, but Ron didn't answer. Hedwig's radar-like ability to find anyone was failing her, in the distraction of weariness and the weather.
Where is Ron?
Usually, she would wait patiently, but not now. Hedwig knew Harry's message needed immediate attention. She checked the common-room window, but he was not there; then, she flew to tap on another pane — one that she had rarely needed to visit before.
Hermione awoke with a start. She had often heard the pecking of owls at her window at home, but here, in this weather? Then she saw it was Hedwig, and knew it must be important. She struggled with the sticky iron latch and opened the creaky window to the storm and to a very wet owl.
Once Hedwig was inside and had delivered the message, Hermione's eyes widened. It was hard to read by candlelight or lumos charm, because of the medium in which it had been written.
It was crudely scratched on a wide bone.
Rubbing with quill ink helped. The note was succinct:
RON — DON'T COME ALONE — TRAP — HP
Hermione didn't know what this was all about, but she could almost guess. She quickly arose, dressed for travel, and hurried away with Hedwig into the shadows of a sleeping Hogwarts.
-o-
Ron, still dripping from the storm, checked the Adventure book one more time. It was tough keeping track of what the current maze was called. If we were a bit more keen he thought, we would have permanently marked the route in both directions on the first trip.
He reached another branch in the tunnel. Okay, concentrate, genius. I'm coming out of the Twisty Maze of Little Passages — so, this is the Maze of Little Twisting Passages on the left, and the Little Twisting Maze of Passages on the right. Do it proper, now. I want to go left... no, right!
In the end, it didn't really matter which way he chose. When Ron stepped into the intersection, the floor of the tunnel gave way. A heavily weighted net dropped on him from above, and a crude alarm gong banged as he went down. Like Harry, he struggled to reach for his wand, but it was hopeless.
All too soon came limping footsteps, grunts, and the odor of troll.
-o-
For a moment, the figure in the shadows of Dumbledore's office pondered the next move.
"You really know where Harry went, and why, but you won't tell me?"
"Now, Miss Granger!" answered the Sorting Hat. "I pledged my secrecy in the matter. Harry wouldn't have insisted if it weren't important. My lips are sealed... or they would be, if I had lips."
Then, a strange smile formed; she chuckled. "Yes, you will tell me." She began searching around Dumbledore's desk, then looked through her own pockets.
The hat was startled. "I... I detect a certain deviltry coming over you, and I'm very surprised at you. I hope you're not planning some trick. I shan't be inveigled easily."
"Trick the great Sorting Hat? Oh, no. We're past tricks. I tried being reasonable. Let's see, it's here someplace... Ah! Here it is! Is this convincing enough?"
"Aggggghhh! You wouldn't use that!"
"I'm sorry about this, but I'm quite desperate, so let's hurry along, please. Tell me what I need to know. Don't make me use this."
"You wouldn't!"
"Try me."
-o-
Ron, bound hand and foot in ropes, landed with a thump on the littered floor. The door was slammed shut, leaving him in total darkness. "Bloody troll," he muttered.
He was not alone. A familiar voice said, "I told you not to come alone. I hope you didn't."
"Harry?"
"Who else. I'm over here, sitting up against the wall."
Ron started inching through the darkness toward the voice. "I must have missed something. You told me what?"
"Oh, no...Ron, you didn't get my message?"
"What message?"
"So no one else knows we're here?"
"No, just me. I came looking for you."
"Then we're done. Hedwig found me, and I sent word to not come by yourself, that it was a trap! Unless you came with a small army, we're sunk."
"Well, any one coming through the tunnel is going to get nabbed, too. The troll must have figured we got in there, and opened up a pitfall trap. It was between the twisty maze of little... oh, whatever. How much trouble are we in?"
"You'll be sorry you asked. Mystery solved, Ron; the goblins have been leaving Hordgrund on their own, one by one, out of fear. They didn't want anyone stopping them, so they left by the only way where they wouldn't be seen by the other goblins. They waited til dark, then climbed onto the troll's causeway... but he had set pitfall traps there, too, and nabbed them. Goblins can't shout, so they couldn't call for help."
"So he's locking them up, just because they were trespassing on his stupid road?"
"No. He needed them, Ron, because he was too injured to hunt much any more."
"But the other goblins hunt in the same forest as he does. How could he force them to hunt for him, without being caught at it?"
"He couldn't."
"So what's he been doing with them?"
"We underestimated him." Harry was slow in answering. "He's been eating them."
"WHAT?"
"But I think his diet just changed. Instead of goblins, he nabbed us. Ron, I'm his next meal."
-o-
It was like "Accio Hedwig" again. Hedwig couldn't get used to the sensation of flying with her wings tucked, but all in all, she was content to be cuddled under Hermione's slicker. With the force of the storm at their backs, they should be in Hordgrund quickly enough… if they didn't run into a tree! Hermione was really awful at flying a broom, and the storm wasn't helping any.
The broom took another sudden dip in altitude. For the first time in her life, Hedwig was airsick.
-o-
Harry continued explaining to Ron. "The first room I was put in was littered with goblin bones; he must cook them and eat them there. That was the only writing materials I had for sending the owl post with Hedwig. When he tied me up and moved me here, there was a goblin, also tied up. He told me how he'd gottten there, and what he had heard and seen. Tonight, the troll came for him. I have a feeling I'm tomorrow's meal. And now, you're here. He'll eat well this Christmas…"
"This is grotesque!"
"I'll really try to loosen you, Ron; maybe I'll do better on yours than mine. I'll gnaw them, or whatever I can do, but I don't think it'll work. The ropes are rough, but very strong and tight. I've been all over the floor looking for something sharp enough to cut them, but that was a waste."
"Can we dig our way out through the floor?"
"No, I tried that. The floor is just dirty. A inch or so down is solid rock slabs. It's a castle floor, after all."
"Harry, we can't stay here if he's going to eat us!"
"We could always hope for outside help. But you're telling me my note went nowhere — and I saw to it the hat won't tell anyone. Ron, we've doomed ourselves."